Of Lullabies and LeopardSpotted Sneaks
by The Author Formally Known As Queen Sora
Summary: Neville finds Luna sitting at the Black Lake after the Battle of Hogwarts. Post DH. Spoiler warning for those who have not read it yet. NLLL.


Disclaimer: I do not own Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, or any of the characters mentioned in the following story. They are the property of J.K. Rowling. I do, however, own the ideas of Leopard-Spotted Sneaks, Spanish Ardots, and Nazboons. Those brilliant creations are all mine. ;P

The school was still bustling with people, all celebrating the defeat of Voldemort and mourning the innumerable amount of deaths at the same time.

Neville had grown tired of the excitement. He headed outside, desperate to find some fresh air and get away from the stuffiness of the Great Hall.

The thought of watching Mrs. Weasley cry any more over the body of her son or Fleur stifle a sob as she glanced at the corpses of Remus and Tonks felt unbearable.

He felt so powerless to help their sorrow. So he had finally come out here to try and forget the sound of each heartbreaking cry or bittersweet cheer. He had been walking for a little bit, still merely trying to regain his thoughts. He couldn't help thinking over what had transpired this past night. Then he saw her.

She was sitting by herself, staring out at the Black Lake. The light of the newly risen sun glinted off the water and made her golden blonde hair look as if it was sparkling. She looked angelic. He felt his cheeks grow hot at the thought. She always looked angelic to him, but it seemed magnified in this light. Luna Lovegood, be it because of her radish earrings or unwavering belief in the unbelievable, stood out amongst even the largest crowds.

Yet to Neville, she'd stood out for a different reason. He hadn't even realized she existed before his fifth year of school when Dumbledore's Army meetings began. Ever since, however, he'd been absolutely enthralled with her. Well, at first, he thought she was kind of crazy, always going on about Nargles and Crumple-Horned Snorkacks. Soon, though, he spoke to her, suddenly he began to know her. He was one of the very few people to ever realize beneath the delusions, nonsense, and vegetable shaped earrings, she was a person. A brilliant, interesting, beautiful person. That was when he remembered he hadn't seen her since the end of the battle. He had watched everywhere, hoping -- desperately hoping -- she was okay. He found himself moving toward her without another thought. As he reached her, her back facing him, he heard her humming softly. A delicate, soft ballad sort of tune. As usual, she seemed caught up in her own fantasy world. He wish he could be so inclined to become lost in fantasy with her one day.

"Luna," he spoke finally.

The song stopped. She turned around, the ever-present dreamy look in her blue eyes. She smiled a big wide grin, her delicate eyes sparkling to life.

"Neville," she greeted him. She frowned, rising to her feet and nonchalantly touching his face. "You have so many cuts," she said, her usually distant voice twinged with concern.

His face grew warmer at the touch of her gentle hands. "It, it's nothing," he replied, trying to sound tough. He imagined how foolish he must've appeared with his face turning red.

"Your face!" she exclaimed in surprise. "Looks like you've been bitten by a Leopard-Spotted Sneak!"

He just felt relieved she hadn't realized he was just blushing. "N, not that I remember. Maybe?" he played along, knowing his face was only getting redder because her fingers lingered on his cheek.

"They're really not dangerous, not fatal or anything like the Nazboon or the Spanish Ardot... they just make you turn very red in the face, your brain gets a bit fuzzy, and sometimes you might sprout bat wings temporarily. Only in very rare instances, though... if they injected a lot of their venom into you. If you didn't notice, though, then you're probably safe."

He nodded in false relief. There was a moment of silence between them before Neville spoke again. "Are, are you alright?" Her school uniform, he observed, had taken a beating. Her blazer was ripped at the sleeve, as was the dress shirt underneath. A thin cut was across her pale arm. Her face was dirty, but didn't appear bruised or blemished in any way.

She nodded. "I got a bit of a cut from I don't quite remember what... but I..." The light that usually glittered in her features faded. "I was lucky."

He knew what she was thinking of. Lucky, unlike so many others. The same thought stamped into the front of his mind.

"You're alright, too?" She asked, with hope in her voice. "Besides the cuts and Leopard-Spotted Sneak bite?"

"Uh-huh," He confirmed. "Gotten worse from the Carrows while school was in session." He forced a laugh.

She smiled a small, fake smile, but did not laugh.

"May... may I sit with you?" He finally built up the courage to ask. Their eyes met once more.

The excitement had returned to her sapphire eyes.

"Of course!" She plopped back upon the grass before the lake. He sat beside her. She stared out at the horizon, lost for a moment in her own thoughts.

"L, Luna..." He shyly spoke up. She looked at him.

"Hm?" She hummed in reply.

"When I approached you... you, you were humming. What song was that?"

She smiled a little sadly before beginning answering, "A lullaby my mum used to sing to me before she died. It's been a long time, I can't remember many of the words... I still remember the tune, though. I used to fall asleep with my head in her lap as she'd just hum it and stroke my hair..." She looked through him at the distant memory of her deceased mother. "I like to sing it, it makes me feel better when I'm scared or sad... reminds me of my mum... it makes me feel less alone, like she's still with me." Her gaze traveled toward the ground.

"I can't really remember if my mum sang me lullabies..." He murmured rather cynically.

She looked back up at him and frowned. "I'm sorry," she apologized.

He wondered if she was curious to know about his parents. She'd mentioned her mother's death briefly in conversations with him before. Still, he had never broached the topic of his parents. He could only imagine the awkward conversation that could follow. She'd ask if his parents were dead, and then he could tell her oh no, just locked up in St. Mungo's, completely barmy from a Cruciatus Curse.

She didn't, though, as if she understood how uncomfortable the topic was for him. She looked back at him; her gaze serious again. Her brow furrowed as she traced his bruised eye. He shrank back slightly from the surprise of her touch. She frowned, removing her hand. "I'm sorry," She said softly, regretful again. "It still hurts?"

He shook his head. "Not at all," He responded just as quiet. "You just surprised me. Doesn't hurt though... your hand feels nice." Suddenly, the realization of what he had just blathered out hit him. His eyes became fixed on the ground. "I, I'm sorry. That must've sounded really strange, maybe the venom is, is affecting me a little more than..." He trailed off as her hand touched his face again. He looked up.

The color splayed out across her pale face was the shade of her glittering radish earrings.

"L, looks like you might've been bit by the Leopard-Spotted Sneak, too..." He murmured.

She bit her lip nervously and gazed out at the lake again, letting her hand drop back on her lap.

He pondered her sudden redness. He tried to think of what to say next. Sadly, he was rather seriously inept in this area. He began slowly, shyly. "You know, Luna, you're not alone... " He said suddenly, speaking what he had first thought when she told him her reason for humming the lullaby.

She looked up at him, surprised.

He moved a little closer. "I'll..." He took hold of one of her hands. They felt even softer than when they grazed his face, and so much smaller than his. "I, we... I... um... I'm, I'm here for you. So is Ginny and Harry, Ron and Hermione... we're sad, too... I felt like I could've done so much more. I feel like people have died for foolish mistakes I've made... and this entire thing, it's scared me a lot, too, but... you and I... we can be there... for each other," he managed finally. "I want to be there for you, Luna. Seeing you smile, seeing your eyes light up like they do when you smile... it makes this whole thing seem worth it."

And her pink lips curled into the smile that made his fighting so worth it.

"Being able to sit with you, like this, hold your hand, see you... as beautiful as you are... as unbruised and free of injury as you are... seeing that you're okay... it makes all of this worth it." Despite her smile, he expected her to run off. He was ashamed of the sudden outpouring of his feelings that had occurred. However, he knew that if he learned anything from any of this... it was that he couldn't wait for tomorrow to say something. If he waited, he may never get the chance to say... "I love you, Luna," He finally choked out.

Before he could think of what he had said, she had leaned forward, eliminating the distance between them. Suddenly, she was pressing her lips to his.

His head swam and the entire world seemed to melt away. He was intoxicated by the sweet, floral scent and the soft, loving lips of Luna Lovegood. That was all the world was -- just he and the girl he had admired and loved these past two years. He pulled her close, into his arms, admiring this moment for all it was. Her lips felt softer and better than he could've ever imagined. Kissing her made him feel like he could burst with joy.

Finally she pulled away, but remained in his arms. She smiled shyly at him. "A cure for Leopard-Spotted Sneak venom," She whispered in his ear, her breath dancing across his neck. "Just in case."

"I feel better already," He said softly.

Her smile widened, and she intertwined her fingers with his. She leaned against him, her head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her petite figure. The blood and massacres of only hours earlier seemed a thousand years away. They still had a hard road ahead of them; the wizarding community would take a long time to recover from this past year of the Death Eaters' dictatorship. There would always be danger out there, followers of Voldemort and dangerous revolutionaries remained... yet if he had Luna by his side, he felt he could face it all.

"Luna?" He finally murmured to her. She drew back to look into his almond eyes.

"Yes?" The dreamy, relaxed look had returned to her gentle face.

"Sing your lullaby to me." She smiled.

"Alright..." She began to hum softly again the delicate melody he had heard as he approached her.

His head collapsed against her lap and she began to run her fingers through his messy dark hair. He wished that they could stay like this forever, lost in their own little dream world of lullabies and Leopard-Spotted Sneaks.


End file.
